AFI Has Chosen Shirley MacLaine to Receive Life Achievement Award

American Film Institute selects the 77-year-old 'Coco Chanel' actress to be given the special honor for her works in the film industry throughout these six decades.

Photo credit: /WENN

Shirley MacLaine has been chosen to receive the American Film Institute's Life Achievement Award. The 77-year-old veteran actress will be given the special honor during a gala ceremony on June 7, 2012 in Los Angeles.

While announcing the selection on Sunday, October 9, Howard Stringer, AFI board of trustees chairs, explained why the institute picked MacLaine for the honor. He said, "Shirley MacLaine is a powerhouse of personality that has illuminated screens large and small across six decades."

"From ingenue to screen legend, Shirley has entertained a global audience through song, dance, laughter and tears, and her career as writer, director and producer is even further evidence of her passion for the art form and her seemingly boundless talents," Stringer added. Back in 2008, MacLaine's brother Warren Beatty was also honored with the award.

Starting her acting stint in 1955's "The Trouble with Harry", MacLaine won an Oscar for best actress in 1984 through her role in "Terms of Endearment". Throughout her career, she has earned six Oscar and six Emmy nominations, as well as won seven Golden Globe awards.

MacLaine appeared in star-studded romantic comedy "Valentine's Day" in 2010, and her latest movie "Bernie" was released in June this year during the Los Angeles Film Festival. In addition to acting, the Virgina-born actress also penned a book. Her latest one "I'm Over All That: And Other Confessions" was published last April.